COLUMBUS – The Ohio State Buckeyes began preparing for the 2017 football season still stinging from the loss to eventual national champion Clemson that ended the 2016 season on a sour note.
But don’t call it a “training camp.”
“This is the continuation of summer conditioning,” head coach Urban Meyer said more than one during the week.
“Camp will start next week,” he said.
The 105 members of the 2017 squad hit the field a little earlier than in years past, thanks to the elimination of two-a-day workouts and the addition of more practice days across college football.
Players were on the field at 6:30 a.m. Thursday and Friday while still attending summer semester classes later in the day. They will practice again Monday and Tuesday and take Wednesday off before beginning a stretch of 15 practice sessions leading up to the season opener at Indiana on August 31.
Ohio State formerly held four two-a-day sessions during the fall but the NCAA eliminated two-a-days to reduce the number of head injuries
Questions will linger in camp about the quality of the passing game, whether the offensive line can protect quarterback J.T. Barrett, and whether Barrett can return to form under a new offensive coordinator and complete deep passes to mostly untested wide receivers.
The defensive linemen opened up with drills in the large sand pit where coach Larry Johnson had them running in deep sand while wearing spikes.
Players cooled off with some “recovery” smoothies, strawberry/raspberry and peach mango concoctions mixed up by nutrition staff intern Stacey Potter. She blended up 20 pitchers of them with a banana, whey protein and apple juice mixed in as well, a combination of anti-oxidant carbohydrates and whey protein that promotes post-practice recovery.